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“What would you say is the greatest challenge you’ve faced in both the comedic and religious worlds?

It’s hard to be true to yourself. I’m not Mormon enough to please most Mormons. I’m not non-Mormon enough to please most people in the comedy world. I don’t know which side I’ll end up on yet, but I’m trying to figure it out on my own time. Either that or straddling two worlds is such great fodder that I’m really just in it for the jokes.”

I would say that taking offense is choice we make, not some uncontrollable force that governs our lives.

Well said.

So, at the age of 18 – and after a fantastic experience attending high school in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area – I was packed off to BYU because they thought it would “fix” me. They lived with the notion that somehow being around all those righteous young people would be an inspiring environment for me.

What happened, however, was just the opposite. I experienced a culture shock for which I was unprepared. I discovered just how “weird” Mormon culture can be and was totally unprepared for how conservative members of the church can be (and the often often harsh judgements that come along with that conservatism). And my way of dealing with it was to poke fun.

My point in writing this is not to be critical of the culture, but to say that I believe we ought to be able to look at the peculiarities of our culture and to laugh at them, particularly the Utah brand of Mormonism (which can very often be parochialism in the extreme).

Having lived here for 20 years, I can also say that what I at first viewed as a cruel banishment has turned into real enjoyment of a place. My wife and I and our children really love living in Suburban SLC and have found many terrific advantages to living in a place like this (really we view it as a gateway to the rest of the western US, which we love – we love to Kerouac alot).

But, from to time, I am reminded that the culture in certain parts of the church here is still odd, narrow, weird – whatever appellative you want to apply – and I love to joke about it, cause the stuff we do sometimes IS REALLY HILARIOUS (the book club discussion alone is enough to send me into fits of laughter).

So, rock on Elna, I look forward to reading the book. If some are offended, well they are offended. But, I would say that taking offense is choice we make, not some uncontrollable force that governs our lives.

****.

Name one. (Besides yourself.)